Billionaire Elon Musk makes space travel history: His SpaceX rocket blasts into orbit, launches 11 satellites and makes amazing landing on an X marked back on Earth (10)

The privately-held company had flown 18 successful missions with the Falcon 9 before its failure during the summer.

Just minutes after its liftoff in June, the rocket broke up with a robotic Drago cargo capsule for the ISS.

SpaceX said the initial part of the liftoff went well, until the vehicle went supersonic at which point it exploded.

Musk posted an update soon after the explosion saying: 'Falcon 9 experienced a problem shortly before the first stage shutdown.

'There was an overpressure event in the upper stage liquid oxygen tank.'

After the incident, Musk said that all rockets in the future will have their struts individually tested before flight.

The upcoming launch will test out a new version of the Falcon 9 that will make it easier for the company to recover the rocket after take-off.

Last week, Elon Musk and his team revealed they will be making a ground landing on this attempt.

Earlier this year, the billionaire signed a lease at a landing site at Cape Canaveral, and already painted an X to mark the spot of the landing.

Nasa confirmed that Space X is using Kennedy Space Center's historic pad 39A for launches of Falcon Heavy rockets.

The moment the first stage booster landed back on Earth. Loud cheers and chants of 'USA, USA' could be heard in the control room